VCC updates vetting after report on former contractor

Vancouver Community College says it has updated how it selects Indigenous elders and knowledge holders after CTV News reported that it had employed a contractor with a long history of sexual violence against adolescent girls.

An internal campus statement obtained by CTV News says the revised process adds another level of vetting through consultation with the three Host Nations — Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh — and Métis Nation British Columbia.

The statement does not identify the former contractor, but appears to refer to John Walter Sam, 61, whose convictions date to 1982 and who was designated a long-term offender in 2002. The judge who made that designation described him as a sexual predator who victimized vulnerable children. Sam said his crimes were in the past and that the college dismissed him without giving a reason.

VCC employees had raised concerns with CTV News after discovering Sam’s criminal history following his sudden termination. The college previously said only that the contractor was no longer providing services to VCC.

The new statement says the college made immediate changes after receiving concerning information from Indigenous community members and ended contracts that no longer met expectations. It does not say whether criminal record checks are conducted before hiring, saying its processes meet its legal obligations and responsibilities.